Where You're Going
by missd1athlete
Summary: chapter 2 is FINALLY up! read and review please
1. she doesn't know

**I've been meaning to write this for quite some time now, but college kept getting in the way. Wheeeeeee for Christmas break! - Read&&REVIEW please! **

_DISCLAIMER: I do not own 'Ass Back Home' by Gym Class Heroes. I also do not own Naruto, or any of it's respective characters. They unfortunately belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I DO own Katsu Saito, and all rights to her use ;)_

Extending her left leg slowly, Katsuye Saito examined, with noticeable distaste, the formerly smooth, tanned skin of her lower thigh, knee, and calf, now soiled with several brand new scars. She grimaced slightly, she felt more than exposed without her usual bandage-wraps covering the majority of her lower limbs. Leaning against her crutches with a sigh, Katsuye sighed softly; the sharp, yet silent exhale of breath a telltale sign of frustration. What she was frustrated about, however, was much less black and white, even to the young kunoichi. From her position behind the large window of her current abode within the Konohagakure Medical Center, she could all but hear the scene unfolding roughly two to three hundred yards away at the village gates. Pulling herself from her thoughts, her green eyes scanned the group at the gate again, noting that the four ninja had not moved to leave the village; from the looks of the situation, they were still discussing the specifics and stratagems of their current mission.

She knew two of the four as shinobi she'd met and befriended a month or so before, at the start of the chunin exams. _Kotetsu and Izumo…_ at the head of the group, the obvious front-runner was a tanned, well muscled jonin, with a head of black hair and a goatee to match. A cigarette hung from his mouth, and Katsu, in her mind's eye, could almost see the smoke swirling away from the breath of each spoken word. She smiled fondly at the image. _Captain Sarutobi. Asuma-sensei… _Her gaze fell on the final member of the team, standing at the captain's right hand, and lingered there. Of course he would be assigned to this mission- he was Asuma's favorite, after all. Lazy to a fault, but highly intelligent. A brilliant strategist with a nearly flawless poker-face to match, he was an ideal asset to most any mission. _Shikamaru…_

Sighing again, more audibly than before, Katsuye slowly dropped her head, allowing the welcomed coolness of the glass to press against her forehead before closing her eyes for a few moments. A curtain of her long, brown hair slipped from behind her shoulders across her fallen face, but she made no move to brush it back; she chose instead to absentmindedly wrap a thin piece repeatedly around a finger. The painkillers she'd been prescribed courtesy of Tsunade-sama, in combination with extensive medical nin-jutsu had dulled the throbbing of the more severe damage in her left leg, reminiscent of the recent chunin exams. Opening her eyes once more, she glanced tentatively back to the team at the gate. What the medicines did not dull was the growing hollow ache in her chest as she observed the group passing beneath the arching gateway and slowly but surely shrinking into the distance, before disappearing into the foliage of the forest completely.

_**I don't know where you're going…**_

_**Or when you're coming home…**_

_**I left the keys under the mat to our front door,**_

_**For one more chance to hold you close…**_

"—are you even listening to me? Katsu!" Katsuye jumped slightly, startled from her daze by a concerned, yet familiar voice. "…Katsu?" another voice inquired, softer than the first. She turned towards the voice slowly, meeting the concerned jade-colored eyes of Sakura Haruno and the sympathetic gaze of the blue-eyed blonde, Ino Yamanaka. Sakura's mouth opened, as if to speak, but no sound escaped her parted lips. Sighing, Ino made her way to Katsuye's side. "Lady Tsunade said you're well enough to go home…" The blonde began, gently guiding the brunette away from the window as Sakura nodded in agreement. Smiling gratefully at her friends, Katsuye followed The blonde and pinkette towards the exit, every once in a while joining in on the girlish chatter and giggling that had begun almost immediately between the reunited childhood friends. Passing through the medical center's exit, Katsuye's eyes flicked once more in the direction of the village gates. The direction of the recently departed squad. The direction of Shikamaru Nara.

_**I don't know where you're going…**_

_**Just get your ass back home.**_


	2. remember the name

**So, here's chapter 2! Sorry it took so long. I wish you all would review though, i've got a lot of hits but no reviews- and I'd love to know if you like these little one-shots. **

**If there's anything you'd like to see in one of these little fics, PLEASE let me know? I love to write for people. So, anyways, on to the fic!**

The silence reverberating around the large room was all but deafening to the large group of shinobi it held—had _been_ holding for the past twelve hours. Age, rank, gender; none of these would seem to matter had an outside set of eyes described the scene. Men and women, boys, girls, genin and jounin alike stood alone or in small groups at various intervals along the railing of the raised scaffolding of the large, rectangular arena. Fortunately for those within, prying eyes were not an issue. The spacious room was windowless, the smooth concrete walls and tiled floor were unbroken, making them perfect for amplifying both announcements and auditory status updates- via grunts of effort, shouts of victory, or moans of either defeat or pain—from the matches that had been held, and were currently _being_ held there. The only sound heard in this particular moment, however, was the shallow breathing of those remaining genin that had yet to be chosen to fight.

All eyes, genin-competitor and jounin-sensei alike, were glued to the large screen at the center of the northern end of the arena. Two lists of names flashed in rapid succession for what seemed like an eternity, before the jounin standing at the center of the tiled floor beneath them, Hayate Gekko, lowered his arm to his side. The top list of names began to slow flashing individual names for increasing periods of time before coming to a halt on a single name. _Katsuye Saitou._ There was a small murmur of semi-relief heard from the genin around the room, followed almost immediately by the soft _whoosh_ing sound of several dozen heads turning to acknowledge the newest competitor chosen for the PRE-preliminary Chunin Exam matches. Katsu blinked once at her name on the screen, before squaring her shoulders and turning to meet each pair of eyes boring into hers. Each genin and jounin was staring openly at her. Examining her. _Judging her._ The stares seemed to go on for ages, before a distinctive "_A-chem!" _sounded from the floor of the arena. Snapping out of her daze, she realized that Hayate was staring at her boredly, arm raised over his head, clearly awaiting the command to stop the second list of rapidly flashing names.

Slowly, Katsu nodded once, her green eyes returning to the screen as the jounin again lowered his arm to his side. The second list, like the first, began to slow. It flashed a dozen or so names, then six names, down to three, before assuming a painstakingly slow pace between two individual names. There was, again, a collective sound of relief from the genin not chosen for the fight to follow. "Hn." A grunt of acknowledgement sounded from the opposite railing, before two sets of footsteps echoed through the previously silent air. Each step was purposeful, yet indecisive, as Katsu made her way down the southern of the two staircases leading to the lower level of the arena. Taking her place at the center, she gave the now-still screen one last look, hoping she'd read her opponents' name wrong, that she'd drawn his less-skilled and more compassionate cousin. But no, reading the name again only confirmed her fate. Hayate's bored voice announced the two chosen for the seventh match of the day.

**Saitou, Katsuye**

**VS.**

**Hyuga, Neji**

Katsu's stomach dropped, as her eyes rose from her own hands to her opponent's own judgmental gaze. His pupil-less lavender eyes stared irritatedly back at her own carefully chosen demeanor. She knew a great portion of the Hyuga's wins were forfeits; many opponents simply couldn't handle the searing scrutiny- the complete and unhindered confidence and judgment radiating from those pale eyes. She wasn't going to allow him to win this match with mind games alone, no matter how painful his unwavering gaze was proving to be. Hayate chose to begin the match just as she came to this chosen decision. The fated "Match, begin." was heard by both opponents, but neither moved. Seconds that felt like hours ticked by, before Katsu made the first move; lifting her right hand, she brought her thumb to her lips and bit down. Neji eyed her, dropping into a defensive stance at the sight of her motion. The skin on the pad of her thumb broke beneath her teeth, and she tasted the metallic blood on the tip of her tongue. Bringing her hand slowly from her lips, she smeared a thick line of red across the back of her left hand. She repeated this process with her left thumb and right hand. All the while, the Hyuga's stare burning holes into her thoughts calculatingly.

He moved to a neutral stance, scoffing. "Do you plan on actually fighting me today? Or are you simply using this 'display' as an embarrassing attempt to buy yourself time, because you are aware the better shinobi in this match is in fact, not you?" Shaking her head in response, Katsu made several quick hand seals, one appearing rapidly after the other in quick and quiet succession. _**Tiger-Boar-Ox-Dog-Serpent-Dog-Boar-Tiger.**_ "Ultimate Substitution." She spoke softly, more to herself than the young man standing before her, as she stepped back into a defensive stance. Neji's pale eyes twitched, whether in annoyance or superiority she wasn't sure. She had little time to even consider the choices before the boy suddenly took four steps forward, his left arm shooting out quickly in the direction of her left shoulder. Katsu slammed her right arm up in a powerful, yet obviously desperate block, forcing his hand over her shoulder and past her as she dropped low to counter with a swift kick to take his legs from beneath him. As quickly as he'd attacked, his feet lifted off the ground to avoid her counterattack. '_Shit'_ she thought as he evaded her next few punches and kicks with ease, adding a few offensive attempts of his own in between. '_He's fast…'_ Suddenly, she noted that Neji was no longer in her line of vision. Panicked, she snapped her head to the right to look over her shoulder, just in time to see Neji pivot on his left foot, the right one cutting towards her face at near-blinding speed. In what she knew was a basically futile attempt to defend, she slammed her hands together in a three-hand-seal combination. _**Tiger-Serpent-Tiger. **_

Multiple exclamations of excitement for the first landed blow sounded from the scaffolding above, as a body soared through the air and landed roughly, tumbling and rolling over itself before skidding to a halt roughly forty feet from the original strike. Pulling himself from the ground with a muffled groan, Neji Hyuga turned to face Katsuye Saito. The girl stood exactly forty-two feet from where he now knelt; his byakugan was quick to confirm this. She was struggling to appear collected, but he knew better. From her defensive position, he noted that her chest was heaving slightly, eyes clearly showing alarm and what looked like disbelief. Slightly shaken himself, Neji stood, and began a curving arc to the right, slowly circling the girl who had _somehow_ managed to land a blow. He took a fleeting moment to glance up to Shikamaru Nara. Though lazy, the boy had proven to be close-to genius. '_Perhaps he can figure out her secret.'_ The genius in question was leaning against the railing, eyes roaming the distance between the two on the floor below. He was definitely thinking. Calculating. It was only a matter of time before the answer came to the pony-tailed genin.

The match continued for the better part of the next two hours with both Neji and Katsu landing multiple strikes. Katsu, however, had only proven to agitate the Hyuga boy when her powerful taijutsu strikes met his skin, both exposed or bare, while Neji's had managed to slowly but surely block all but one of her chakra points over the extended course of their battle of wills. She had used little-to-no ninjutsu throughout the battle; she relied heavily on her taijutsu, with the exception of the nine different times she had formed the _**Tiger-Serpent-Tiger **_combination. She had only used this when she had pulled him heavily onto the offensive, allowing herself to slip into an almost frantic state of defense, before quickly forming the seals as he initiated what would be the ending strike. He never landed any of those final blows; it seemed as soon as she formed the second _**Tiger**_ seal, their roles would immediately reverse, with Neji in the girl's former place on the defensive, and Katsu delivering the hard strike Neji had initiated.

The Hyuga studied his increasingly weakening opponent. She was fighting her own body to stand, gripping her left calf in desperation. The last kick he had landed on her small frame was more than simply 'laced' with chakra. The blow had emitted such a large chakra burst, that the muscles in her lower leg had seemingly imploded. Her chest heaved slow and hard as she wheezed, the breath coming and going from her lungs in short, slow bursts. The bandage-wraps covering her legs from above her knees to her ankles had long since torn and loosened. They, along with the similar wraps running from above her elbows to her wrists, were beginning to bunch up around her joints and at the bottom of her limbs. Her black shorts and sleeveless vest were filthy, the light tan-colored fur of her hood matted with crimson blood. Her leaf headband, wound around her left upper-arm had slid down to her elbow, the metal plate dented by his fist earlier in the match. He brought his pale gaze to her face, acknowledging the mix of dread, weakness, and desperation in them. She had managed to stand, but she was obviously putting most of her weight onto her right leg. She brought her left hand to her face a final time, biting the pad of her thumb yet again and drawing even more blood. She smeared another thick line across her tanned skin, red, red blood mixing with the sheen of sweat across her forehead.

Drawing a long, thin kunai from the pouch at his side, Neji dropped his gaze to his specific target, and quickly took aim. As he let the elongated blade fly from his grip, out of the corner of his eye he saw her raise her hands, as if to make a hand seal, then lower them to her sides just as quickly, balling her slender fingers into tight fists. A whimper escaped from behind her grit teeth, as the kunai's blade entered and exited her calf at a diagonal angle, before embedding a few inches of the blade into the tile floor, securing her to that one spot. Blood poured from the tunneled-hole, and she cried out loudly after a single attempt to wrench her leg, and the blade, from the floor. "Hn." He smirked at the struggling girl, as her green eyes, shining as she blinked back tears, met his own haughtily lavender ones. "I suppose I'll give you the choice to call the match." Her body stiffened at both the sickly-sweet venom dripping from his voice, as well as the humiliation of calling her own defeat. The green eyes flashed in defiance and narrowed. "You _wish_, Hyuga. Call it yourself" she spat. The boy's cocky grin faded to a grim line. "As you wish…" He took a running leap towards her, anger blazing in his pupil-less eyes. "Eight trigrams, sixty-four palms." His voice, though raised, was cold; there was no emotion in the statement, simply an explanation to those spectating. Katsu dropped her head, and softly brought her hands together to form a triad of hand-seals. _**Tiger..…Serpent…..Tiger**_**. **

"The _FUUUU-CK?_" were the only words that escaped his lips. Forced from his the very center of his being, the words echoed throughout the room, meeting the ears of spectators, genin and jounin alike. The sensations raining down upon and pulsing through Neji Hyuga's body were both powerful and painful—and seemingly unending. It was as if every muscle in his body was bruising, every tendon tearing, every bone _breaking_ under the barrage of strikes landing upon his form. And suddenly, there was nothing, save the air singing past his ears as he flew backwards. A final blow to his back sent the air rushing from his lungs and his thoughts reeling. Stars in his eyes, and coughing painfully, the Hyuga fought to regain both his breath and his composure. Slowly bringing himself to a kneeling position, he made the connection that it was, in fact, the northern wall of the arena that had knocked the air from his lungs so brutally. Using some of his remaining strength, he brought himself to full-height, steadying his weight against the wall as a strong spell of dizziness came over him. Coughing a final time he spat a mix of blood and saliva onto the concrete-tiled floor. He forced himself to look in the direction his opponent had formerly been standing. When he saw no one standing before him, he glanced left and right. No Katsu in sight. "Where…" he mused, before bringing his eyes back to where she should have been standing.

Glancing at the floor in that exact spot, he found her; she lay on the cold stone tile, arms splayed and legs tucked beneath her. It was as if she had simply crumpled to the floor, without him having to even touch her. Taking a ginger step towards her, he bit back a scream of pain. Swearing inwardly, he pulled the kunai from his left calf quickly and smoothly, turning his head and grunting in annoyance at the sight of the blood pouring from the wound. He sighed audibly, and stepped forward again slowly, closing the distance between himself and his opponent steadily, albeit cautiously. For all he knew, it was a trap. She could be waiting for him. On the other hand, from the looks of it, she had run out of energy or chakra, or both. She had looked so weak with that kunai pinning her to the floor. The same kunai he'd pulled from his own calf moments before.

Lost in his thoughts, he startled when his foot came in contact with something solid. He came to a halt quickly and took a single step backwards, having closed the distance between his fallen opponent and himself fully. He scrutinized her fallen form, making note of every bruising blow he'd landed on her smooth skin, every cut bleeding out onto the cool grey concrete in sticky crimson rivers. Her usually bright eyes were half-closed and clouded with unconsciousness. Her chest rose and fell slowly. "Weak." His voice sounded foreign, pushing past his dry lips as he roughly rolled her over onto her stomach with his foot. "The match is clearly over." He looked at Hayate expectantly; the concern in his lavender eyes had long since faded to pride. Nodding, the jounin addressed those on the scaffolding above, announcing the Hyuga as the winner of the match, while several medic-nin gently secured Katsu on a stretcher behind him. Neji nodded at both Hayate and the fallen Katsuye, before making his way up the steps to take his place with his teammates Little did he know that the half conscious Katsuye had seen the small gesture of respect in her direction.

Fading in and out of consciousness, Katsu scanned the faces of her fellow genin, well- the ones still standing on the scaffolding above her. The expressions ranged from the pity darkening the eyes of Sakura Haruno and Ten Ten… the confusion clouding the gaze of Kiba Inuzuka and Ino Yamanaka… but the emotion that held her attention the longest was the hope and pride shining in the eyes of Hinata Hyuga. '_Wonder what that's all about…'_ Katsu couldn't finish her thought as her mind slowly faded into darkness.


End file.
